Wednesday Night Video – The Laughs of Richard Dreyfuss
July 25, 2012 1 Comment
I’m not even sure why I find this whole thing fascinating, but what an opus!
Weekend Movie Review: The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)
July 19, 2012 5 Comments
I was on the fence about whether or not to go see The Amazing Spider-Man, but knew I had made the right decision as soon as the lights went down and the trailers began. You know how it can be easy to tell how bad a movie is going to be by how difficult it is for them to find choice moments for the preview? Well, the best line in the trailer for The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 was the following:
DUDE: I didn’t expect you to be so — you.
Awesome sauce. I now know not to go see The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2. Seeing Spider-Man already saved me twelve bucks.
Random thoughts on Spidey — including some spoilers — after the break.
60 Second Movie Review: Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
May 31, 2012 15 Comments
Rosemary’s Baby is a film I’d never seen before. (And if you haven’t, skip this review unless you don’t mind spoilers.) Sure, it’s been on that fairly lengthy list of movies that I’ve been thinking about seeing since I was, oh, a teenager. I’m starting to realize that I’ll die without having viewed all the films on my list. It’s far from the biggest regret I’ll have while dying, but it’s a small one. I wonder if they have Netflix in the afterlife?
60 Second Movie Review: Vertigo (1958)
April 14, 2012 3 Comments
I’m going to be teaching Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo (1958) in a few weeks so I decided to watch it again, but to do so first without my scholar’s cap on. Vertigo is a movie that comes along with a wealth of scholarly literature, but this is just me writing as a movie fan, typos and all. Also, it seems a bit silly to shout “Spoiler Alert!” when discussing a movie made over fifty years ago, but I suppose if you haven’t seen Vertigo yet, you should:
a) explain why. I mean, really, what are you waiting for?
b) turn back now. Come back two hours and eight minutes later, once you’ve had the chance to see the film.
60 Second Movie Review: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (2011)
January 13, 2012 9 Comments
The 2011 film of John Le Carré’s 1974 espionage novel Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy reminds us that there was terrorism before our current global state of affairs, and that governments were clearly involved, in a way we used to recognize.
60 Second Movie Review: Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011)
January 11, 2012 4 Comments
When did all movies start getting named like academic papers, with titles invariably followed by subtitles? It seems a bit ponderous, but despite the weight of the name, Hollywood still kicks academia’s ass when it comes to explosions, car chases, and aerial feats.
Ebert on the Movies
January 1, 2012 Leave a comment
Roger Ebert has a post up with his own ideas of why the movie industry has seen a decline in revenue in 2011. He ends by saying that…
The message I get is that Americans love the movies as much as ever. It’s the theaters that are losing their charm. Proof: theaters thrive that police their audiences, show a variety of titles and emphasize value-added features. The rest of the industry can’t depend forever on blockbusters to bail it out.
…but it’s worth reading how he arrives at this conclusion.
60 Second Movie Review: Sleeping Beauty (2011)
December 23, 2011 1 Comment
Written and directed by Julia Leigh…
…Sleeping Beauty (2011) made the press mostly because the plot line is scandalous. Namely, a money-starved college student (played by Emily Browning) gets knocked out and undressed for rich old white men.
Ferrell is Feral Funny
December 12, 2011 Leave a comment
Comedy can arise out of hard-fought technique or stem from the transcendence of style. Both a comic’s comic and a people’s favorite, Will Ferrell is one of those gifted folk who do funny as both an art and as a craft, and he was one of the first stars to conquer online humor, bursting forth with this comedy gem “The Landlord” on his writing partner Adam McKay’s web site FunnyOrDie.
(Warning: “The Landlord” might be NSFW”):
McKay is one of the best at combining laughter with political insight. If you haven’t seen his film The Other Guys (2010) yet, which stars Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg, I highly suggest putting it in your Netflix cue.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1386588/
It’s hilariousness and it’s a critique of our corrupt political and financial system. Like the best comedies and the best of Ferrell, it works on multiple levels.
